A new season of prep sports is just around the corner, and high school cross country teams around the Region are getting ready to run. With meets yet to officially begin, Tempo Run Timing & Events hosted a Northwest Indiana Cross Country Preview Show on Tuesday evening.
Last hosted in 2021, the event brought coaches and athletes from schools across the Region to Catch Table & Tap where they were interviewed by GreatNews.Life’s owner and founder Chris Mahlmann, and Calumet Region Striders Coach & Temp Run Timing employee Deanna Grimes. Tempo Run Timing organized the event hoping to shine a rare spotlight on the athletes.
“Cross country sport is a little under the radar, but the kids work just as hard as those in any other sport,” said Luis Guillen, co-owner of Tempo Run Timing & Events and head boys cross country coach at Wheeler High School. “They don’t get the same pomp and circumstance as football or anything like that, so being able to celebrate these kids and celebrate this sport is something I always want to do. Organizing something like this is a no-brainer in my eyes.”
Mahlmann’s interviews explored the teams’ histories, the athlete’s preferences and approaches, and their outlooks for the coming season. While not a runner himself, he sought to dig into what inspires them to work so tirelessly at a sport that is often running in brutal conditions.
“I love sports, I love watching kids compete – I wish adults worked as hard at their jobs as JV cross country runners work at their sport,” Mahlmann said. “I love when people put their mind to something, and cross country has a cool combination of individual performances, with cross families that travel in packs. They put in a lot of effort in grueling conditions, whether it’s hot as blazes or rainy and muddy they do it no matter what.”
Grimes spoke with individual runners, highlighting topics such as their preferences in running shoes, hydration, and their favorite courses around the Region. She said she was eager to shine a light on athletes that are not often seen in the sports page’s headlines.
“We want to encourage these kids and show off to the community that we have some good athletes here in Northwest Indiana,” she said. “It’s a really fun event for the kids to have a chance to see what they’ve got in them before the season starts.”
To do that, Tempo Run Timing coordinated what they called the Catch Your Time – a prediction run where each athlete ran a 1.5 mile course, looking to match their tempo to a time they predicted at the start. Rather than the first one across the line, the winners were those who most closely matched their predicted time.
“As coaches, we want kids to be able to race by feel,” Guillen said. “We don’t want them tethered to a watch. It’s a fun thing where it’s not really about the fastest person, but if you can put yourself in a position to be close to your estimated time.”
The boy’s winner was one of Guillen’s athletes, Titus Parrish, a sophomore at Wheeler High School. He finished just 3 seconds off his predicted time.
“Anyone can run with a watch but being able to know where you’re at without one is a good experience,” Titus Parrish, sophomore. “We work on it a bit in workouts. You kind of just pick what pace you’re going to go and stick to it.”
Parrish is eager to get the season underway – and put his offseason work into practice.
“I’m excited for the season,” he said. “I’ve made big improvements since last year. I’ve been training a lot, year-round, so I’m ready.”
To learn more about Tempo Run Timing, visit www.temporuntiming.com, and for more info on Catch Table & Tap visit www.catch22nwi.com.